The Serpent and the Lion
by WillowInTheMoonlight
Summary: Ron is treating Hermione coldly and she is disheartened. Draco has liked Hermione for years and is finally going to act on it. Takes place in their sixth year, without Draco being a member of the Death Eaters.
1. Chapter 1

Hermione was so confused by Ron's behavior as of late. She knew that it had to do with his inexperience with women, as Ginny had told him that Harry and she had experience kissing, but he treated her so coldly. Harry hadn't noticed a thing. Ron treated him the same as always, albeit he was a bit more disheartened than usual and playing Quidditch poorly. Why was he so callous toward her though?

She went into the Great Hall and sat with her friends. She engaged in conversation with them, assuring Ron that he would do just fine and that he wasn't going to throw up while she continued to think on Ron's behavior. Her attention was drawn when she heard Luna mention Harry slipping something into Ron's drink.

"What?" she said aloud to Luna.

"Well I was wondering why Harry would slip something into Ron's drink," Luna stated.

The three of them noticed Harry poorly try to conceal a small vial that Hermione immediately recognized from Potions class.

"Liquid Luck," she said. "But, Harry, that's cheating!" Harry gave her a look like he didn't know what she was talking about. She noticed Ron's mouth slowly widen into a mischievous grin. "Ronald, don't drink that!"

Ron attempted to give her a similar look to the one that Harry wore but failed due to his excitement. He gulped down his pumpkin juice and walked out of the hall to get ready for his Quidditch match.

* * *

Draco peered at the Gryffindor table whilst his friends chatted. He had gotten good at multi-tasking – listening to his friends and watching Hermione. He had been doing so for nearly six years now and couldn't let his interest in the muggle-born be too transparent. He was a Slytherin, after all, and their founder had expressed his interest in keeping the school limited to purebloods. Not every Slytherin thought this way, but self-preservation was another prevalent trait amongst them and no one wanted to voice an unpopular opinion.

Draco noticed Weasley leaving the table while Hermione sat there, fuming. He wondered what Weasley had done this time to anger Hermione. It seemed like she was always scolding him or Potter. He didn't know why she continued to be friends with them when they always angered her so. He didn't like them at all, but saw why she did. They had saved her from a troll, after all. She had no friends before that. Everyone thought she was an insufferable know-it-all. He liked smart women, though. Pansy was smart, but she dumbed herself down in public, whereas Hermione would not shrink for anyone. He admired that but was also intimidated.

"So are we partying tonight?" Crabbe asked the group.

"Well, there will be a couple parties tonight. Do we feel like being with Slytherins or having an inter-house party?" Goyle inquired.

Draco thought for a moment. "I think multiple houses would be okay. I'm kind of sick of the dungeons. The Ravenclaws always throw a good party when there aren't any exams."

"The Ravenclaws are partying with the Gryffindors tonight, though. That is, after Gryffindor gets over their defeat." Pansy added.

Draco was well aware of this. "With Weasel on that team, their loss should be so bad that they won't show up for a while. Besides, we all get along pretty well with the Ravenclaws and they excel at everything, including parties. Now let's hurry up and decide on what we're doing so that we can stop saying 'party' because it doesn't seem like a real word anymore." The other Slytherins nodded their assent. Draco knew how to work them.


	2. Chapter 2: The Tower

Draco prepared for the night ahead. He had taken to suits lately and thought he looked pretty good in them. He knew Pansy thought so. She had put the idea in his head, to be honest. She had a decent eye. Draco knew he needed to look his best if he wanted to impress Hermione. He cleaned his clothes with various spells and used an aromatic potion to make himself more appealing. He even put a shrunken book in his back pocket so they might be able to discuss something he knew she was interested in.

Draco paced the floor, his mind filled with hesitation. What if she never saw him as more than a muggle-hating Slytherin? He knew he had caused her distress in the past, overcompensating for his attraction. Still, he made her cry and she even punched him once. He didn't want a repeat of that. Goyle had nearly blinded him trying to heal the bruise.

A knock at the door caught his attention. He looked up to see Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, and Blaise come in and pile on his bed. They all dressed well but Crabbe and Goyle definitely brought the average down. Draco, Pansy, and Blaise could have been on the cover of a fashion magazine. Blaise was also in a suit, but his was a blue so dark that it was almost imperceptible on top of a much lighter blue shirt. His shoes were black and polished. Pansy wore a dark green dress with black stockings and a leather motorcycle jacket, which she fully intended to remove to show off the cutouts on the back of the dress and how it stayed up and hugged her figure with such little material, almost as if by magic. Her dark hair hung in relaxed waves that came just below her shoulders. Draco opted for the classic black suit because with a face like his you really didn't want to detract too much from it.

"You ready to go?" Pansy asked of him while she made herself comfortable.

Draco smirked. "Are you going to be able to get out of my bed? Don't get too comfortable now. We'll be late."

"Hey, I'm waiting for you," Pansy replied.

"I'm ready. Let's go stir some trouble."

The group exited the dormitory to find the Ravenclaw party.

* * *

Hermione was still peeved at Harry when she found him at the after-party. Gryffindor had won, of course, thanks to Ron's unfair advantage. She found them both and had started scolding Harry when he pulled out the vial, still full of felix felices.

"You never put it in?" Hermione asked in disbelief.

Ron was angry, his voice full of scorn. "You never believed I was any good," he spat at her.

Hermione was stunned at his malice. "Ron, no! I knew – "

"Yeah, right. I'm sure you did." Ron turned and walked away from them and so many Gryffindors were attempting to congratulate him that Hermione could not have gone after him had she tried.

"He'll calm down in a bit," Harry said, attempting to console her. "Everyone is so excited about winning he should forget he's angry in no time."

Hermione agreed half-heartedly. She continued to converse with Harry for a moment when she was distracted by sudden whistles and cheers. She looked in the direction of the cheering. "What are they – oh." Hermione saw Ron holding Lavender Brown in a passionate embrace, her arms wrapped around his neck. She couldn't bear to watch for more than a moment and slipped away quietly.

* * *

Draco and friends were enjoying the festivities with the other Slytherins and Ravenclaws. There was plenty of dancing and everyone enjoyed letting loose a bit. There were also a few potions the other students had mixed, but those were dangerous and Draco was never known for being brave. He stuck to the hard liquor. He only had a couple shots, though. He wanted to have the nerve to speak to Hermione, not fall on her.

He needed to get a bit of air, he decided, so he left the crowded room. He hadn't been in the hallway more than a minute before he saw Hermione dart up a nearby tower. He wondered what she was doing and followed. When he reached the top of the tower he saw her sitting and crying. He paused and then, not thinking, jested, "You won the match, Granger. Why are you so upset?"

Hermione looked up, saw him, and her eyes narrowed. She didn't bother to wipe away her tears as she angrily expressed her desire for him to leave.

Draco hesitated and began to withdraw. He had taken two steps back before deciding to approach the witch, who was now crying more softly to herself. He sat next to her and pulled out a handkerchief for her.

Draco approached cautiously. He pulled out the green handkerchief he had in his jacket pocket and handed it to Hermione as he sat down beside her. "Here."

Hermione glanced up and looked at his offering. "No thanks," she replied. "For all I know you've hexed it."

"I'm not nearly in the proper state of mind to be so clever," he said, laughing as he withdrew the handkerchief.

Hermione thought about this briefly before snatching the handkerchief and wiping her eyes.

Draco observed Hermione sniffing often. "You can blow your nose if you need to. I can just clean it and the thing is green anyways."

Hermione hesitated, then took the suggestion.

Draco watched Hermione as she blew her nose and used scorgio to clean the handkerchief. She hid her face as she handed it back to him. He tucked it back in his pocket, never taking his eyes off of her. His eyes traced the curls of her hair and he watched as she tried to compose herself. She had stopped crying but still looked forlorn and would not face him.

"Stop staring at me," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Draco grinned. "Sorry. Didn't realize I was."

"You still are."

"Sorry." He averted his gaze, staring at his shoes. "So, what's wrong?"

"Malfoy, I don't know why you're here but I'm not about to spill my guts to you." Hermione turned a bit farther away from him.

Malfoy, appearing more to speak to his shoes than to her, attempted reason. "Granger, I've been nothing but nice to you since I've been here and you're being really rude."

Hermione turned to look at him and recognized the truth in his words. She thought about the downsides of telling him and figured that the worst her could do was tease her. "Ron and I are fighting."

"What are you fighting about?"

"I'm not sure. I think he's embarrassed about his lack of dating, but he's just been so mean to me lately. And now he doesn't think I believe in him and he just goes and kisses Lavender." She spoke with such spite infused into the name.

Draco noticed the emphasis and there was no masking the hurt on his face as he asked, "Are you ... jealous, Granger?"

Hermione was surprised at his tone and peered at his face. "What are you playing at, Malfoy?"

Draco turned to meet her gaze. His eyes dropped to her lips for a moment before he slid his hand behind her neck and kissed her.

* * *

Hermione was shocked at her current situation. She was being kissed - by Malfoy! She lost herself for a moment, remembering the times she fantasized about this. This, though, was reality. Nothing good could come of it. She pushed Malfoy away and ran out the door and down the stairs. It was a short while before she heard footsteps behind hers. She continued to run until she made it back to the portrait of the Fat Lady, gave the password, and made her way to her dormitory. No one paid much attention to her. The crowd was smaller but everyone was still celebrating.

She couldn't keep her thoughts straight. She knew it must be some trick. Malfoy was trying to win some bet or steal her underwear and show the whole school, or something more sinister like using her hair for a polyjuice potion, although she didn't know how he would be able to speak like her. Barty Crouch Jr. managed it when he impersonated Mad-Eye Moody, however. He could also be trying to get close to her to hurt Harry or Ron. That would explain why he seemed disheartened when she told him they were fighting.

Malfoy had never been particularly ambitious, though. She knew he was all talk. That was all he had done to them, aside from when he was part of the Inquisitorial Squad. All of the Slytherins who joined had been particularly awful, trying to get them in trouble all the time.

Based on his past transgressions and his openly-hostile attitude towards muggle-borns, she would never admit how often she imagined them together. She often admired his white blonde hair and blue-grey eyes. When he spoke she noted his sharp jaw and was often drawn in by his lips. He was smart, too. He was so good in potions. In terms of knowledge, she knew quite a bit and his rivaled hers. Putting their skills to practice, however, and she was always just a step behind! She knew that he looked at her as a rival in other subjects. She supposed that meant he did think of her as more than a "mudblood."

She didn't like him. He hated those like her. They would never get past the circumstances of their births. Hermione decided that she would go to sleep and forget all about the night's events.

* * *

Malfoy headed back to the dungeons early. He lied on his bed, his head swimming. He knew that there was no turning back now. He had to find Hermione and explain what had happened. Or he could play it off like he was drunk and didn't know what he was doing or didn't remember it at all. After all, if she went blabbing it was her word against his.

No. Draco knew that if he ever wanted something to happen between them he couldn't push her away now. He got up and paced, thinking of what he would say to her.


End file.
